MANHATTAN 


itfoer  JUfnmg 


OF  NEVADA 


REPORT  OF  ADELBERG  &  RAYMOND. 


1865 


University  of  California  •  Berkeley 

Purchased  from 
THE  HEARST  FAMILY  FUND 


MANHATTAN 


®0mpttg 


OF    NEVADA. 


REPORT  OF  ADELBERG  &  RAYMOND. 


NEW    YORK: 
WM.  C.  BRYANT  &  CO.,  PRINTERS,  41  NASSAU  ST.,  COR.  LIBERTY        n 

1865. 


MANHATTAN 


llm  Him 


OF     NEVADA. 


REPORT  OF  ADELBERG  &  RAYMOND. 


NEW    YORK: 

WM.  C.  BRYANT  &  CO.,  PRINTERS,  41  NASSAU  ST.,  COR.  LIBERT?. 

•1865. 


MANHATTAN 

ing   fempang  of 


CAPITAL    STOCK,     -      -      -      -      $1,000,000, 
In   Shares   of  $1OO   Each. 


Trustees  : 

THOMAS  1ST.  DALE,  NEW  YORK. 

E.  PEET,  ,  " 

H.  AUGUSTUS  TAYLOR, 

JOHN  J.  OSBORN, 

E.  REED  McILVAINE,     - 

CHARLES  Y.  MARTIN,  BALTIMORE. 

President : 

H.  AUGUSTUS  TAYLOR. 

Secretary   and    Treasurer : 

CHARLES  G.  TAYLOR. 

Resident  Superintendent : 

JOHN  E.  BO  YD,  AUSTIN,  NEVADA 


Office   of  the    Company— 30    BROAD    ST.,   NEW   YORK. 


REPORT. 


INTRODUCTION — COMPARISON    OF   VIRGINIA    AND    REESE   RIVER. 

The  early  traveller,  whoever  he  may  have  been,  who,  entering 
the  country  east  of  the  Sierra  Nevada,  in  the  latitude  of  Carson 
Lake,  gave  it  the  expressive  name  of  the  Great  American  Desert, 
no  doubt  supposed  that  he  had  found  a  barrier  between  the 
Atlantic  and  Pacific,  more  formidable  than  mountain-peaks  or 
stormy  seas.  No  matter  with  what  giant  strides  the  coast  of  the 
Atlantic  or  the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi  might  advance  to 
wealth  and  power — .no  matter  what  imperial  cities  might  arise 
along  the  golden  shores  of  the  Pacific ;  between  them  stretched 
this  desolate  land,  of  then  unknown  extent,  apparently  forsaken 
of  Heaven,  and  offering  only  death  as  a  reward  for  the  enter- 
prise of  man. 

The  observer  of  to-day  cannot  escape  the  same  first  impres- 
sion. Nothing  breaks  the  ashen  monotony  of  this  waste.  There 
is,  no  form,  no  color,  upon  which  the  eye  can  rest  with  pleasure. 
The  brain  seeks  in  vain  for  suggestions  of  thought.  In  this 
horrible  wilderness  men  have  lost  themselves,  body  and  intellect 
at  once — their  minds,  like  their  feet,  wandering  in  circles  with- 
out guide  or  landmark.  The  bones  of  unfortunate  travellers 
have  gradually  defined  the  road  through  the  desert. 

But  this  forbidding  land  was  to  become,  not  a  dismal  barrier, 
but  a  silver  bridge,  between  the  East  and  West.  Compensating 
Nature  has  blessed  this  region,  to  atone  for  its  sad  deprivations, 
with  a  wealth,  in  the  measure  of  which  the  fancy  of  the  poet  can 
only  compete  with,  not  surpass,  the  statistics  of  the  mint. 


There  is  no  known  field  so  peculiarly  fitted  to  the  spirit  of 
American  enterprise  as  this  Eeese  Eiver  country.  That  spirit 
demands  positive  material  results,  without  loss  of  time,  and  with- 
out the  necessity  of  that  close  discrimination  and  economy  which 
is  the  only  guide  through  the  intricacies  of  business  in  old,  long- 
settled  countries.  In  a  word,  we  ask  quick  and  sure  profits ;  and 
if  they  are  not  sure,  then  they  must  promise  to  be  large.  The 
energy  displayed  in  the  recent  development  of  petroleum  lands, 
is  evidence  of  this.  But  Eeese  Eiver  Silver  Mines  can  show  a 
more  encouraging  record  than  petroleum  in  its  palmiest  days. 
Let  the  following  facts  suffice  as  proof : 

The  Eeese  Eiver  District  was  discovered  at  the  close  of  1862, 
and  began  to  be  settled  and  prospected  in  1863.  Last  year  there 
was  capital  invested  there  to  the  amount  of  $2,000,000 ;  and  the 
amount  of  bullion  produced  in  the  same  year  was  $600,000,  or 
30  per  cent,  on  the  capital.  This  year,  without  the  use  of  any 
additional  machinery,  the  monthly  product  is  $100,000.  The 
product  is  limited  only  by  the  number  of  mills  running,  since 
every  mill  is  supplied  to  its  full  capacity  with  ores.  Taking  into 
consideration  the  fact  ih&tfour  mills  produced  the  above  results, 
and  that  thirteen  new  and  improved  mills  will  be  at  work  next 
year,  we  are  justified  in  saying  that  five  years  can  hardly  pass 
before  ten  bars  of  silver  will  be  shipped  from  Austin  for  every 
one  that  goes  from  Virginia  City,  hitherto  the  Ophir  of  the  con- 
tinent. Austin  and  its  district  will  only  begin  to  live  when  the 
Pacific  Railroad  is  completed.  The  astounding  achievements  of 
the  past  two  years  are  as  nothing  to  the  certainties  of  the 
future. 

American  capital,  as  we  have  said,  demands  that  profits  shall 
be  large,  if  not  sure.  We  venture  to  say  that  nowhere  else  can 
they  be  found  so  large  and  so  sure  as  in  the  Eeese  Eiver  country. 
A  man  or  a  company,  with  eyes  open,  cannot  fail  here ;  lor  there 
are  no  sources  of  failure  aside  from  the  dishonesty  of  agents. 

The  characteristic  features  of  the  great  argentiferous  lodes  of 
the  Eeese  Eiver  District  may  be  best  comprehended  by  a  com- 
parison of  this  district  with  that  of  "Virginia,"  also  called 
"  Washoe." 


These  two  regions  are  divided  by  Carson  Sink,  or  the  valley 
of  Carson  Lake,  lying  between  the  eastern  slope  of  the  Sierras 
and  the  range  of  hills  known  as  Silver  Hill.  The  two  regions 
are  subdivided  into  numerous  "  districts,"  technically  so  called ; 
but  the  general  names  of  Virginia  and  Reese  River  are  justified 
by  the  total  and  thorough  distinction,  marked  no  less  by  the 
valley  above  mentioned  than  by  radical  differences  of  climate, 
topography,  rnineralogical  features,  and  vein-phenomena.  These 
causes  have  already  produced  in  the  population  of  each  region 
a  local  and  distinct  spirit.  In  energy,  enterprise  and  contempt 
for  each  other,  the  men  of  Virginia  and  Reese  River  eagerly 
compete.  Virginia  is  now  far  ahead  in  material  progress ;  but 
we  think  the  chances  of  the  future  are  in  favor  of  Reese  River. 
The  impartial  observer  should  be  cautioned  against  accepting 
the  opinion  of  either  side  concerning  the  other ;  for  "  Reese 
River  is  nowhere  "  to  the  Virginian,  and  the  partisans  of  Austin 
assign  to  Washoe  the  same  indefinite  locality. 

The  first  great  distinction  between  them  is  this  :  The  produc- 
ing mines  of  Virginia  City  are  all  on  one  lode,  which,  in  its  in* 
numerable  subdivisions,  extensions,  continuations,  feeders  and 
what  not,  supplies  a  host  of  companies  with  names,  which,  if 
they  do  not  mean  Comstock  Ledge,  mean  nothing.  The  mining 
field,  however  capriciously  dismembered  by  multifarious  owner- 
ship, is  to  the  eye  of  the  geologist  and  miner,  a  unit — all  its 
phenomena  being  referable  to  one  master-lode. 

The  numerous  names  of  Reese  River,  on  the  other  hand, 
signify  as  many  distinct  undivided  lodes,  each  having  character- 
istics of  its  own,  while  certain  general  features  are  common  to 
them  all. 

Again,  the  ores  of  Virginia  carry  a  large  portion  of  their 
silver  in  the  native  state,  while  the  silver  of  the  Reese  River 
ores  is  perfectly  mineralized  : — that  is,  it  appears  invariably  in 
chemical  combination  with  electro-negative  elements,  as  true 
silver  ore* 

A  third  important  difference  is  in  the  outcrops  of  the  metal- 
liferous veins — those  of  Virginia  being  bold  and  strongly 
marked,  while  those  of  Reese  River  are  indistinct,  blind,  and 
unattended  by  irregularities  of  the  surface.  In  fact,  the  Reese 
River  lodes  may  be  said  to  crop  out  several  feet  below  the 
surface. 


This  comparison  of  the  two  regions  is  necessary,  first,  to  ex- 
plain how  those  who  are  only  acquainted  with  the  mines  of 
one  of  them  may  be  totally  deceived  in  judging  of  the  other; 
and  secondly,  to  show  the  folly  of  expecting  that  the  same  in- 
dications accompany  rich  ore  in  both,  and  to  hint  at  the  magni- 
tude of  the  task  which  now  lies  before  us — namely,  a  descrip- 
tion of  the  Reese  River  country,  with  especial  reference  to  the 
property  of  the  Manhattan  Company. 

TOPOGRAPHY   OF   THE   EEESE   RIVER    COUNTRY. 

The  eastern  declivity  of  the  Sierras,  on  which  stands  Virginia 
City,  descends,  first  steeply,  then  with  imperceptible  grade,  to 
the  Sink  of  Carson  River — that  is  to  say,  from  an  altitude  of 
6,000  feet  to  one  of  perhaps  3,500  feet.  From  Carson  Sink  the 
country  rises  again  eastwardly,  with  easy  grade,  to  Silver  Hill, 
the  most  westerly  of  a  series  of  mountain  ranges,  parallel  with 
each  other  and  with  the  Sierras,  and  separated  by  level  plains 
or  fiats  of  little  width  but  great  length.  The  widest  of  these 
plains  is  that  of  the  Carson  Sink  already  alluded  to,  and  also 
called  Twenty-six  Mile  Desert.  It  is  the  lowest  of  the  series. 
Indeed,  these  narrow  plains  rise  regularly  in  successive  order 
eastwardly,  and  form,  taken  together,  a  system  of  terraces  be- 
tween  Virginia  City  and  Austin,  which  makes  the  elevation  of 
the  latter  city  a  few  hundred  feet  the  greater  of  the  two.  The 
mountain  ranges  may  be  considered,  then,  as  merely  the  dividing 
lines  between  many  parallel  terraces  in  which  the  country  rises 
from  Carson  Sink.  The  detritus  from  the  eruptive  rocks  of 
these  ridges  has  formed  the  flats  between  them,  and  constitutes 
a  poor,  pebbly  and  sandy  soil,  on  which  nothing  grows  for  miles 
but  the  dingy  sage  bush*  Here  and  there  small  accumulations 
of  hitmtts  occur,  where  some  bold  ledge  crosses  the  descent  of  a 
creek.  At  such  points  will  be  found  greater  Variety  of  growth > 
such  as  wrild  prune,  wild  gooseberry,  wild  rose,  cotton  wood,  a 
sort  of  mahogany,  &ct  The  "  pino  "  or  pine-nut  tree  is  found 
on  the  southern  slopes,  where  the  elements  of  disintegrated  rock 
are  favorable  to  vegetation ;  but  it  only  grows  in  groups,  not 
densely.  Such  groups  of  pine-nut  are  called  timber  lands. 


. 

Where  they  are  large,  they  furnish  fuel  for  several  years.  The 
neighhorhood  of  all  settled  places  is  already,  cleared.  "Want  of 
fuel  is  the  only  serious  drawback  to  the  development  of  the 
wonderful  resources  of  this  country. 

Each  of  the  mountain  ranges  is  a  water-shed.  There  is  no 
communication  of  water-courses  between  the  flats ;  but  each  is 
in  this  respect  a  little  inland  world,  producing  and  consuming 
its  own  precipitations  of  moisture  from  the  atmosphere.  Every 
rivulet  and  spring,  as  well  as  the  principal  rivers,  has  its  own 
sink  near  by,  where  it  plunges  down  and  disappears,  or  pauses 
and  dries  up.  Of  these  we  shall  speak  again. 

GEOLOGS"   OF   THE   REESE   RIVER   COUNTRY. 

The  rugged  conformation  of  the  mountain  ranges  indicates  at 
once  their  great  antiquity.  Primeval  granite  with  chloritic 
slates,  "the  latter  mostly  altered,  always  broken  and  much  tilted, 
are  the  constituent  rocks.  Here  and  there  are  small  patches  of 
sandstone  and  limestohe — remnants,  the  lithological  character 
of  which  is  almost  obliterated  and  metamorphosed  beyond  accu- 
rate recognition.  These  remnants  of  sedimentary  rock  are  few 
and  far  between.  In  the  latitude  of  Virginia  and  Austin  the 
plutonic  rocks,  (granite,  syenite,  porphyry,  &c.,)  and  volcanic 
rocks  (trachyte  and  trachytic  lava,)  predominate,  while  north  of 
this  line  the  outcrops  of  chloritic  and  argillaceous  slates  are 
larger  than  the  rest. 

Among  the  most  obvious  geological  features  of  the  country 
are  three  parallel  zones  of  volcanic  rock,  which  run  across  it 
from  east  to  west,  cutting  the  ridges  and  valleys  at  right  angles. 
From  a  great  distance  they  strike  the  eye  as  yellow  or  light 
red  belts,  stretching,  a  mile  wide,  over  the  backs  of  the  ridges. 
They  lose  themselves  in  the  alluvium  of  the  flats,  to  reappear 
on  the  opposite  mountain  sides  in  the  precise  line  of  their  course. 
The  rock  of  these  belts  is  all  spongy,  burnt,  and  altered  beyond 
recognition.  It  contains  traces  of  cinnabar  and  large  quantities 
of  soluble  sulphates  and  chlorides.  These  are  the  original  de- 
positories of  all  those  salts  that  appear  in  the  deep  mould  of  the 
flats,  where  the  rivulets  evaporate  or  "  sink." 

The  variety  of  contents  and  temperatures  among  the  springs 
2 


. 

of  these  terraces  is  wonderful.  Highly  charged  with  soluble 
salts  from  the  volcanic  rocks,  the  water  descends  to  be  filtered 
and  evaporated  in  the  sands  of  the  flats,  and  leaves  a  residuum 
of  common  salt  in  one  place,  of  carbonate  of  soda  in  a  second, 
of  borax  in  a  third,  of  alum  in  a  fourth.  These  are  the  evapo- 
rating dishes  of  the  laboratory  of  the  great  chemist,  Nature. 
Her  retorts,  too,  are  near  by.  Fissures  in  the  rock  are  their 
necks,  from  which  sublimations  of  pure  sulphur  are  deposited. 
She  experiments,  too,  with  hydrocarbons,  after  the  fashion  of 
Yenango  County ;  and  a  deposit  of  yellow  tar  (on  Tar  Creek,  a 
few  miles  south  of  the  latitude  of  Austin)  is  the  evidence  of  her 
success  in  the  Petroleum  line. 

VEIN-PHENOMENA   OF   THE    REESE   RIVER   COUNTRY. 

Long  and  careful  study  has  enabled  us  to  divide  the  argen- 
tiferous veins  of  this  region  into  two  great  systems,  distinct  in 
age,  character,  and  value.  The  first  of  these  we  denominate 
the  Old  System,  because  the  veins  cut  the  primary  rocks  only, 
and,  therefore,  cannot  be  geologically  more  recent  than  the  Sil- 
urian Age.  They  have  a  general  course  N.W.  and  S.E.,  and 
dip  from  40°  to  70°  to  the  N.E.  They  are  disturbed  by  a  series 
of  faults  running  15°  "W.  of  S.,  which  must  have  occurred  soon 
after  the  formation  of  the  veins  themselves.  At  all  events, 
these  faults  are  older  than  the  veins  of  the  second  system,  since 
they  are  cut  by  the  latter.  The  Silurian  veins  are  invariably 
small.  They  carry  from  the  outcrop  to  the  water-level  the 
never.failing  chloride  of  silver,  with  carbonates  of  copper  and 
lead,  and  antimoniates  of  lead.  Below  the  water-level,  the 
metals  appear  in  the  state  of  sulphurets,  and  the  veins  become 
immensely  rich  in  true  silver  ores,  such  as  Antimonial  Sulphu- 
rets  of  Silver,  (Brittle  Silver  Ore,  Dark  Euby  Silver  or  Pyrar- 
gyrite,  Miargyrite),  Arsenical  Snlphurets  of  Silver,  (Light  Ruby 
Silver  or  Proustite),  Stephanite,  and  a  great  variety  of  Fahlerz  or 
Copper  Silver  Glance,  of  various  richness.  A  symmetrical  ar- 
rangement of  vein-matter,  with  interlacing  combs,  is  character- 
istic of  these  veins. 

This   System  is   divided  into   two   classes,   of    which   the 
first  carry  oxidized  metals  even  below  the  water-level,  have  a 


11 


very  dark,  blueisli-black  color,  and  both  hanging  and  foot  wall 
(granite)  totally  decomposed  by  violent  vein-action,  to  a  distance 
of  five  feet  on  either  side. 

The  second  class  carry  no  oxydized  metals  below  water-level, 
are  light-colored,  and  have  decomposed  the  country  rock  for  two 
or  three  feet. 

The  veins  of  the  second  or  New  System  are  of  greater  size, 
but  less  antiquity  than  the  first.  They  strike  1ST.  and  S.,  dip 
almost  90°,  and  vary  in  width  from  three  feet  upwards.  They 
carry  as  gangue  massive  quartz,  with  no  internal  arrangement  of 
vein-matter,  and  show  by  the  appearance  of  sulphurets  at  their 
very  outcrops,  that  they  are  of  geologically  recent  origin.  This 
system  also  must  be  divided  into  two  classes,  the  first  of  which 
show  oxyds  and  sulphurets  mixed  often  with  backs  of  iron  and 
manganese,  and  the  second  carry  only  the  sulphurets  of  base 
metals  even  at  the  outcrop.  The  latter  veins  are  sometimes 
150  feet  thick ;  but  they  cannot  as  a  class  be  called  rich  veins. 

The  following  resume  will  present  in  a  comprehensive  view 
this  classification : 

(N.  B. — It  must  not  be  supposed,  that  strike  and  dip  are  so 
uniform,  as  this  table  seems  to  indicate.  In  this  respect  there 
is  considerable  variation  among  veins,  even  of  the  same  class. 
Indeed,  if  we  consider  the  manner  in  which  fissure  veins  are 
formed,  it  seems  strange  that  there  should  be  any  parallelism 
at  all.) 


12 


SYSTEM. 

CLASS. 

OCCUR- 
RING} IN. 

STRIKE. 

DIP. 

OUTCROP.            CONTEXTS. 

| 

EXAMPLE. 

VALUE 

I. 

Below    water- 

level.    Some 

Chloride    of 

oxyds  and  rich 

N.  W. 

40° 

silver,    car- 

sulphuretted 

Revenue 

& 

to 

bonates  of 

ores.  Vein-mat- 

Mine, on 

Very 

Granite. 

S.  E., 

70° 

lead,     cop- 

ter symmetrical- 

Lander 

rich. 

with 

N.  E. 

per,  &c. 

ly  arranged. 

Hiil. 

faults. 

Black. 

Country  rock 

much  decom- 

Old .  . 

posed. 

II. 

No  oxyds  below 

water-level. 

Granite 

do.     Lighter 

Vein-matter 

Oregon 

(and 

do. 

do. 

in  color  than 

symmetrically 

Mine,  on 

Very 

Slate.) 

No.  I. 

arranged  ;  vein- 

Lander 

rich. 

action  on  coun- 

Hill. 

try  rock  less 

violent. 

m. 

Massive 

Sulphurets  below 

Many  lodes 

Varying 

quartz,  some- 

water-level. 

of  the  Smo- 

Slate 

N. 

either 

times  iron  or 

No  arrangement 

ky    Valley 

Some- 

(and 
Granite) 

& 
S. 

way  a  few 
degrees 

manganese 
back,    with 

of  vein-matter, 
which   is   mas- 

and   A  ma- 
dor    Dis- 

times 
good. 

from  90°. 

oxyds    and. 

sive  quartz. 

tricts. 

New. 

sulphurets. 

IV. 

do.,  with  sul- 

Base  metals  ; 

North  of 

Doubt- 

do. 

do. 

do. 

phurets   of 

no  arrangement 

Amador 

ful. 

base  metals 

of  vein-matter. 

District. 

only. 

Several  veins  of  the  Old  System  carry  their  various  antimo- 
nial  and  arsenical  ores  so  pure,  that  the  bullion  produced  after 
amalgamation  is  995-997  fine.  Indeed,  one  bar  of  chemically 
pure  silver  (1,000  fine),  was  cast  in  Austin,  at  the  period  of  our 
visit,  from  the  ores  of  the  Midas  mine.  Other  veins  carry  more 
copper,  lead,  and  even  zinc,  in  their  ores ;  but  all  of  this  system 
are  rich,  and  have  this  in  common — that  they  carry  their  silver 
perfectly  mineralized,  and  never  native,  as  in  the  Washoe  mines. 
While,  therefore,  the  almost  universal  method  of  beneficiating 
the  Virginia  ores  is  amalgamation  without  roasting,  it  is  neces- 
sary in  this  region  that  amalgamation  should  be  preceded  by 
chloritic  roasting.  Taking  into  consideration  all  local  circum- 
stances, we  believe  that  the  "  Silver-amalgamation  Process,"  as 
developed  years  ago,  in  Freiberg,  Saxony,  will  be  found  the 
most  advantageous  for  Heese  River. 


13 

The  veins  of  the  Old  System  are  found  in  greatest  abundance 
in  the  Eeese  River  District  itself— a  subdivision  of  the  country, 
having  its  centre  at  Austin,  and  taking  its  name,  as  does  the 
region  generally,  from  a  small  stream,  which  flows  through  the 
narrow  flats,  from  the  junction  of  the  Toiyabe  and  Shoshone 
ranges,  forty  miles  south  of  Austin,  to  a  point  fifty  miles  north 
of  that  town,  where  it  sinks.  The  names  Reese  River,  Amador, 
Smoky  Valley,  &c.,  are  merely  geographical  in  their  significa- 
tion ;  and  it  is  only  for  convenience  sake  that  we  identify  the 
district  around  Austin  more  especially  with  the  old,  rich,  small 
argentiferous  veins.  These  veins  in  reality  are  also  found  in 
other  districts ;  but  it  would  carry  us  too  far  for  the  limits  of 
this  Report  should  we  enter  upon  a  detailed  enumeration  of 
localities.  We  have  already  filled  many  pages  with  a  general  dis- 
cussion which  would  not  be  necessary,  were  the  country  better 
known.  Xo  comprehensive  view  of  it  has^yet  been  taken,  and 
nothing  is  now  before  the  public  from  which  a  clear  idea  of  that 
country  can  be  obtained,  in  its  great  topographical  and  geolo- 
gical features.  This  fact  will  excuse  our  extended  treatment  of 
that  branch  of  the  subject,  and  likewise  explain  the  substantial 
repetition  of  this  general  view  in  many  of  our  reports  upon 
Reese  River  properties. 

PROPERTY    OF    THE    MANHATTAN    SILVER   MINING    COMPANY. 

This  property  belonged,  until  recently,  to  the  Oregon  Mill 
and  Mining  Company,  under  which  name  it  has  already  yielded 
large  profits  and  won  a  wide  reputation.  It  comprises : 

1.  One  ten  stamp  mill,  with  amalgamating  apparatus,  capa- 
ble of  working  seven  tons  daily. 

2.  Eighteen  hundred  acres  of  wood  land,  which  will  furnish 
fuel  for  about  ten  years.   This  land  is  some  distance  from  Austin, 
and  therefore  not  liable  to  trespass — a  most  important  recom- 
mendation.    The  present  cost  of  the  fuel  brought  thence  to  the 
mill  is  $6  50  per  cord. 

3.  Four  silver-bearing  quartz  lodes,  viz. : 


u 

(a.)  North  Star  Ledge.  (Original  location,  not  Buel  North 
Star.) — This  lode  has  heretofore  furnished  the  ore  for  the  mill ; 
but  it  is  not  worked  at  present,  for  the  want  of  machinery  to  lift 
the  deep  waters.  It  belongs  to  Class  II,  Old  System,  and  is  very 
rich.  Its  pay-streak  of  ore  is  12  inches  wide.  The  ore  brought 
to  grass,  all  taken  together,  has  yielded  at  the  rate  of  $200  per 
ton  in  the  mill.  The  production  of  the  vein,  when  it  was 
worked,  was  5  to  10  tons  daily,  with  a  force  of  15  men  at  $5 
per  day. 

(5.)  Oregon  Ledge. — This  lode  now  furnishes  the  mill  with 
ore,  yielding  7  tons  daily,  with  a  force  of  12  men.  The  pay- 
streak  is  15  inches.  The  gross  yield  of  the  ore,  taken  promiscu- 
ously, is  $200  per  ton.  Old  System,  Class  II. 

(c.)  Blue  Ledge.  Old  System,  Class  I. — Yery  rich,  but  not 
yet  opened. 

(d.)  Southern  Light  Ledge. — Just  opened  to  a  depth  of  100 
feet.  Pay  streak  15  inches.  Six  men  take  out  2  tons  of  rich 
ore  daily.  Old  System,  Class  II. 

The  number  of  feet  on  each  ledge  is:  North  Star,  1,000; 
Oregon,  1,000  ;  Blue  Ledge,  800  ;  Southern  Light,  900.  They 
are  parallel,  and  sufficiently  near  each  other  to  be  embraced  in 
one  comprehensive  system  of  workings. 

The  present  shafts  and  workings,  although  they  have  already 
yielded  handsome  returns,  are  to  be  considered  rather  as  pros- 
specting  work  than  as  the  proper  foundation  of  systematic  and 
permanent  operations.  In  order  to  complete  our  view  of  the 
present  condition  of  the  property,  however,  before  proceeding  to 
indicate  its  capacity  of  future  development,  we  adduce  a  few 
statistics  from  the  books  of  the  old  Oregon  Mill  and  Mining 
Company. 

The  mines  have  thus  far  furnished,  on  an  average,  7  tons  of 
ore  daily,  yielding  §200  gross  returns  per  ton.  The  cost  of 
mining  and  smelting  is  estimated  at  $40  per  ton.  Assuming 
about  20  working  days  in  each  month,  we  should  have, 


15 


140  tons  of  ore,  mined  and  worked,  giving  a  gross 

income  of $28,000 

140  tons  of  ore  at  a  cost  of  $40 5,600 


Leaving  a  net  profit  of  ...................        $22,400 

Or  per  annum  ...........................      $268,800 

In  reality,  the  profits  of  the  proprietors,  last  year,  were  up- 
wards of  $240,000,  representing  interest  at  24  per  cent,  on  a 
capital  of  $1,000,000. 


OF  WORKING  AND  DEVELOPMENT. 

The  following  plan,  communicated  to  the  Company's  agent  in 
a  confidential  Report  of  the  27th  May,  1865,  indicates  our  con- 
ception, not  of  the  full  capacity  of  the  property,  but  of  the  pro- 
per steps  by  which  its  development  should  be  initiated,  and  the 
condition  to  which,  in  a  short  time,  it  may  be  brought. 

The  present  openings  on  the  Company's  lodes  have  abund- 
antly proved  the  richness  of  the  ores,  and  have  yielded  hand- 
some returns  ;  but  they  are  not  located  as  well  as  they  might 
be,  with  reference  to  future  economy  and  ease  of  working.  The 
relative  position  of  the  different  lodes  affords  an  admirable  op- 
portunity for  systematic  exploration. 

I.  General  Plan.  —  The  Oregon  vein,  which  furnishes  at  pres- 
ent most  of  the  ores  beneficiated  at  the  Oregon  Mill  —  say  7  tons 
per  diem  —  and  the  North  Star  vein,  the  upper  workings  on 
which  are  now  deserted  for  want  of  proper  hoisting  and  pump- 
ing machinery,  can  be  worked,  on  account  of  their  flat  and 
similar  dip,  with  a  single  engine.  The  present  incline  on  the 
Oregon  offers  all  facilities  for  hoisting  and  pumping  on  that 
vein.  But  the  North  Star,  lying  somewhat  flatter  than  the 
Oregon,  should  be  opened  from  a  new  point  of  entry.  The  dis- 
tance between  the  vein-  sheet  of  the  Oregon  and  that  of  the 
North  Star  is  between  140  and  160  feet.  That  is  to  say,  a  per- 
pendicular shaft  at  or  just  below  the  outcrop  of  the  former  vein 
will  cut  the  latter  at  a  depth  of  140  to  160  feet  (if  the  dip  of  the 
North  Star  is  not  subject  to  some  violent  disturbance,  of  which 
there  is  no  sign).  We  advise  the  opening  of  the  -N  orth  Star 


16 

by  such  a  shaft,  near  the  mouth  of  the  Oregon  incline.  Even 
if  there  were  no  other  reasons  in  favor  of  this  plan,  it  is  recom- 
mended by  the  following  considerations : 

The  North  Star  and  Oregon  both  belong  to  the  old  system  of 
veins,  a  never-failing  feature  of  which  is  the  series  of  faults 
which  we  have  already  described,  which  shifted  the  veins,  in- 
variably westward,  long  before  the  present  configuration  of  the 
surface  was  determined  by  neptunic  agencies.  These  shifts  con- 
tinue to  a  depth  of  about  300  feet,  if  we  may  judge  from  the 
westward  slides  in  the  mines,  which  diminish  with  the  increase 
of  depth.  The  appearance  given  to  the  upper  parts  of  such 
veins,  in  broken  ground,  is  that  of  a  connected  series  of  lenti- 
cular masses  rather  than  an  uninterrupted  vein-sheet.  Now  the 
proposed  shaft  would  strike  the  North  Star  below  its  broken 
ground  and  on  its  settled  dip — a  considerable  advantage* 

But  there  are  other  considerations  which  speak  for  this  loca* 
tion.  It  is  contemplated  to  work  both  mines  with  one  engine ; 
and  only  very  serious  reasons  could  justify  the  location  of  the 
two  shafts  so  far  apart  as  to  necessitate  a  cumbrous  transmission 
of  power.  The  proposed  arrangement  would  be  in  this  aspect 
most  convenient.  There  can  be  but  one  objection  urged  against 
starting  the  North  Star  shaft  from  the  mouth  of  the  Oregon  in- 
cline; namely,  that  it  would  have  to  be  sunk  through  dead 
rock*  But  even  this  is  not  quite  true.  Before  the  shaft  has 
reached  the  depth  of  70  feet  it  will  have  cut  the  Blue  Ledge 
(lying  between  the  other  two),  which,  although  nowhere  prop- 
erly opened,  has  proved  itself,  by  the  remarkably  rich  chloride- 
rock  obtained  from  its  outcrop,  a  hundred  yards  west  of  the 
Oregon  location,  a  vein  of  great  promise.  Indeed,  the  celebrated 
Revenue  mine  is  located  upon  it.  The  opportunity  of 
opening  this  lode  en  passant,  by  the  North  Star  shaft,  is  an  ad- 
vantage offered,  so  far  as  we  know,  by  no  other  locality  in  this 
region.  In  fact  it  is  one  ground  of  the  very  high  estimate  which 
We  place  upon  the  value  of  the  Manhattan  property ;  and  it 
would  be  a  great  oversight  to  neglect  it. 

There  is  no  danger  of  missing  the  Blue  Ledge,  since  its  whole 
vein- sheet  lies  between  the  Oregon  and  North  Star,  intersecting 
neither.  Moreover,  it  is  our  opinion  (based  only,  it  is  true,  on 


17 

analogies)  that  the  space  between  the  two  latter  lodes  is  irregularly 
occupied  by  lenticular  masses  of  silver  ores,  traceable  to  the  dis- 
turbances of  all  three.  A  shaft  which  prospects  this  ground 
will  certainly  throw  much  light  upon  the  character  of  the  Com- 
pany's whole  mining  field. 

Finally,  this  shaft  will  stand  in  the  middle  of  the  1,000  feet 
of  the  Oregon,  and  leave  800  feet  of  the  North  Star  location  to 
the  East,  thus  affording  opportunity  for  future  developments  to 
an  indefinite  extent.  For  the  present,  this  one  shaft  will  be 
all  sufficient ;  but  for  future  work  a  second  shaft  near  the  Oregon 
outcrop  should  be  begun,  300  feet  east  of  the  first ;  and  in  due 
time,  according  to  a  systematic  plan,  a  third  shaft  300  feet  east 
of  the  second — thus  providing  for  an  ever-increasing  daily  yield. 
Nothing  is  more  important  than  this  laying  out  of  future  opera* 
tions,  with  reference  to  the  necessities  and  growth  of  a  great 
enterprise ;  and  nothing  has  been  thus  far  so  much  neglected  in 
the  Reese  River  country.  The  rich  mines  of  Mexico  are  suffi- 
cient proof  of  the  folly  of  such  neglect. 

II.  Immediate  Work. — Under  this  head  we  advise  the  Com- 
pany: 

1.  To  begin  the  North  Star  main  shaft  immediately. 

2.  To  procure  pumping  apparatus  for  clearing  the  Oregon  of 
deep  waters. 

3.  To  drift  from  the  bottom  of  the  Oregon  incline,  as  nearly 
east  and  west  as  the  dip  of  the  vein  and  the  drainage  of  the 
drifts  will  allow — 300  feet  in  each  direction. 

4.  To  sink  the  Oregon  incline  50  feet  deeper,  at  that  point 
start  galleries  parallel  to  the  first,  and  continue  in  this  manner, 
opening  deeper  stoping-gronnds  as  fast  as  the  main  incline  can 
be  sunk. 

5.  To  begin  an  incline  on  the  Oregon  300  feet  east  of  the 
present,  to  connect  with  the  galleries  from  the  old  incline. 

3 


18 

The  details  of  this  work  cannot,  of  course,  be  prescribed 
beforehand,  and  must  be  arranged  by  the  Resident  Superin- 
tendent. 

III.  The  Southern  Light.— We  are  fully  convinced  that  the 
present  shaft  is  an  excellent  point  of  entry  for  this  lode,  the  dip 
of  which  is  too  steep  to  allow  of  its  being  worked  in  one  system 
with  the  others.  The  great  richness  of  this  lode  and  the  facility 
of  working  it  may  make  it  the  favorite  one  of  the  property.  It  has 
been  cut  by  a  perpendicular  shaft,  and  the  rich  ore  seems  to  set  in 
below.  We,  therefore,  advise  the  sinking  of  an  incline  on  the  lode 
from  the  bottom  of  the  present  shaft ;  and  we  do  this,  judging  that, 
although  the  angle  of  the  incline  with  the  perpendicular  shaft 
will  be  somewhat  inconvenient,  the  inconvenience,  in  this  par- 
ticular case,  will  be  nothing  to  the  difficulty  of  driving  horizon- 
tal galleries  from  the  perpendicular  man-shaft  through  dead 
rock.  In  the  course  of  future  developments,  shafts  should  be 
sunk  on  the  Southern  Light,  300  feet  apart,  and  stoping-ground 
opened  by  successive  drifts,  50  feet  apart,  as  already  recom- 
mended for  the  Oregon. 

If  this  plan  is  adopted  for  the  four  lodes,  and  put  in  practice 
at  the  most  convenient  points  at  once,  a  daily  yield  of  20  tons 
may  be  expected  by  the  time  the  machinery  necessary  for  bene- 
ficiating  that  amount  can  be  erected.  We  need  hardly  point 
out  that  our  plan  does  not  contemplate  the  outlay  of  money  for 
mining  work  that  is  not  furnished  by  the  mines  themselves, 
since  the  operations  recommended  will  afford  from  the  beginning 
a  continuous  supply  of  ores. 

1Y»  Mill  and  Amalgamating  Apparatus. — The  most  eligible 
location  for  reverberatory  furnaces  for  the  chloritic  roasting  of 
the  silver  ores,  before  amalgamation,  is  immediately  south  of  the 
present  furnace-house.  A  shed  like  the  present  one  should  be 
erected,  and  four  furnaces  built  in  the  southern  part  of  it,  while 
the  northern  part  is  reserved  as  a  discharging-floor,  joining  the 
present  one.  If  the  elevation  of  the  ground  is  not  sufficient  to 
allow  of  a  discharge  through  an  arch  built  below  the  hearth,  the 
roasted  ore  may  be  raked  out  of  the  furnace  directly  upon  the 


19 

cooling-floor,  opposite  the  working  doors.  Each  furnace  should 
have  a  capacity  of  900  pounds.  We  should  advise  building 
them  a  few  inches  wider  and  longer  than  the  present  ones,  in 
order  to  obtain  a  larger  oxydizing  surface.  In  the  construction 
of  the  present  furnaces,  a  mistake  was  made  in  reducing  the 
space  between  the  hearth  and  the  arch  within  too  narrow  a  com- 
pass. It  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  roasting  is  a  process  of 
oxyclation,  in  the  conduct  of  which  we  should  avoid  as  much  as 
possible  all  reducing  influences.  The  flame  of  the  fire-wood, 
containing  particles  of  glowing  carbon  and  carbonic  oxyd  gas, 
is  a  powerful  reducing  agent,  which,  coming  in  contact  with  the 
charge,  tends  to  defeat  the  object  of  the  oxydizing  process. 
Hence  the  arch  in  the  new  furnaces  should  be  10  or  12  inches 
higher  than  in  the  present  ones,  especially  just  forward  of  the 
fire-bridge.  The  completion  of  these  four  would  give  the  Com- 
pany eight  furnaces,  of  a  capacity  of  800-900  pounds  each. 
Estimating  the  time  of  roasting  at  four  hours,  these  eight  fur- 
naces would  treat  upwards  of  20  tons  of  ore  daily. 

The  following  plan  of  amalgamation  we  have  adopted,  for 
reasons  intelligible  only  to  the  practical  and  scientific  metallur- 
gist. In  our  confidential  report  to  the  Company,  we  have  dis- 
cussed this  question  at  length ;  and  we  will  only  say,  that  the 
amalgamation  we  recommend  has  the  advantage  that  it  allows 
the  existence  of  soluble  chloride  of  copper  in  the  roasted  charge, 
and  thus  affords  a  simple  safeguard  against  the  loss  of  silver  by 
volatilization — the  presence  of  soluble  chloride  of  copper,  which 
is  decomposed  more  easily  than  the  chloride  of  silver,  being  con- 
sidered an  evidence  that  no  silver  has  been  lost. 

The  stamp-works  should  be  divided  into  an  upper  and  a  lower 
department.  In  the  upper  division,  towards  the  hill,  10  pans  of 
the  Wheeler  pattern,  one  size  larger  than  the  present  ones, 
should  be  placed,  each  capable  of  grinding  500  pounds  of  roasted 
ore.  This  grinding  is  necessary,  because  a  great  deal  of  the 
roasted  ore  is  sintered  together,  so  as  to  hinder  amalgamation. 
They  should  be  worked  as  at  present,  steam  being  employed  for 
heating  the  ores,  and  more  perfectly  chlorating  those  atoms  of 
silver  which  have  escaped  chemical  action  by  sintering  in  the 
furnaces.  These  10  pans  would  grind  and  prepare  20  tons  of 
roasted  ore  daily. 


20 


In  the  lower  or  southern  department  should  be  placed  10 
amalgamating  tubs,  such  as  are  now  in  use,  to  perfect,  by  means 
of  copper  plates,  the  amalgamation  of  the  ore  prepared  in  the 
grinders.  Each  one  of  these  tubs  will  amalgamate  500  pounds 
of  the  prepared  ore  in  two  hours.  If  one  hour  is  allowed  for  dis- 
charging, the  10  tubs  will  amalgamate  daily  20  tons — each  tub 
receiving  the  ore  prepared  by  one  grinder. 

The  stamp  works  should  be  erected  on  the  hill-side  as  near 
the  mouth  of  the  furnaces  as  convenience  will  allow,  and  so  high 
that  the  stamped  ore  may  be  transported  on  tramways  to  the 
hoppers  of  the  furnaces.  If  20  tons  a  day  are  the  assumed  basis 
of  capacity,  at  least  28  stamps  will  be  required.  As  this  num- 
ber is  not  convenient,  and  as  it  is  advisable  not  to  work  stamps 
to  their  full  capacity,  and  as,  moreover,  one  or  more  stamps  will 
constantly  be  idle  on  account  of  broken  tappets,  or  similar 
causes,  we  advise  the  erection  of  a  32-stamp  mill,  in  8  batteries 
of  4  stamps  each,  each  stamp  to  weigh  600  pounds,  and  to  be 
run  at  the  rate  of  say  TO  revolutions  per  minute.  At  this  speed 
no  part  of  the  machinery  will  be  heavily  strained,  and  the  wear 
and  tear  will  be  lessened. 

An  engine  of  50  to  60  horse  power,  with  ample  boiler  room 
for  the  generation  of  steam,  especially  in  winter,  for  purposes 
aside  from  the  motor,  will  be  required  for  such  an  establishment 
as  we  haved  sketched.  Of  course  the  engine-room  should  be 
carefully  built  and  finished,  so  as  to  exclude  all  manner  of  dust 
and  gases. 

Finally,  the  works  should  be  provided  with  a  laboratory  suffi- 
ciently furnished  for  tests  and  assays  for  the  control  of  the  differ- 
ent departments  of  the  metallurgical  processes. 

ECONOMICAL   VIEW. 

The  above -described  results  could  be  brought  to  pass  in  four 
or  five  months,  under  skillful  superintendence,  with  an  outlay  of 
about  $70,000  cash,  and  a  monthly  reservation  from  the  returns 
of  the  present  mill. 

The  daily  yield  will  then  be  20  tons  of  ore  brought  to  grass, 
crushed,  roasted  and  amalgamated.  This  ore  will  probably  be 
richer  than  has  heretofore  been  taken  from  the  lodes,  since  it 


2L 

will  be  from  deeper  shafts  and  slopes  ;  and  the  cost  of  mining 
and  beneiiciating  will  probably  be  less  than  $40,  the  present 
average,  since  the  enlargement  of  the  works  and  the  develop- 
ment of  the  whole  country  will  reduce  expenses  of  all  kinds. 
We  will  assume,  however,  as  the  yield  $200  per  ton,  and  as  the 
expense  of  treatment  $60  per  ton  instead  of  $40,  leaving  a  net 
profit  per  ton  of  $140. 

In  one  month  of  20  working  days  there  would  be  beneficiated 

400  tons  of  ore,  aifording  a  net  profit  of $56,000 

or  in  one  year 672,000 

representing  67.2  per  cent,  on  a  capital  of  $1,000,000. 

(All  the  sums  mentioned  in  this  report  are  reckoned  in  coin.) 

The  present  cash  value  of  the  property,  i.  e.  the  principal  on 
which  it  pays  20  per  cent,  annually,  is  $1,200,000.  The  ex- 
penditure of  $70,000  more  upon  it  will  make  it  worth,  at  the 
end  of  four  or  five  months,  $3,300,000. 

These  are  facts  and  figures  which  have  a  real  basis,  and  are, 
in  our  opinion,  no  more  uncertain  than  any  other  human  calcu- 
lations. If  we  may  speak  with  frankness  concerning  ourselves, 
we  have  not  the  reputation  of  making  very  flattering  reports. 
Of  a  hundred  reports,  issued  by  us  within  the  last  eighteen 
months,  not  more  than  a  quarter  have  been  unconditionally 
favorable.  We  believe  that  by  our  freedom  in  condemning  un- 
sound enterprises  we  have  earned  the  right  to  praise  with  equal 
earnestness  what  we  find  worthy  of  praise.  The  data  upon 
which  the  present  Report  is  based  were  collected  by  Dr.  Ad  el- 
berg,  during  a  careful  examination  of  the  country,  which  occupied 
many  weeks — and  our  deductions  from  this  data  are  moderate 
and  reasonable.  The  realization  of  the  great  success  we  have 
indicated  is  dependent  only  upon  the  honesty,  fidelity  and  skill 
of  the  Company's  Superintendent. 

ADELBERG  &  RAYMOND, 

Mining  Engineers  and  Metallurgists. 

90  Broadway,  New  York, 
August  3, 1865. 


r£m 


